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Chat: With one-quarter of 2013 season completed, how do you feel about Detroit Tigers?

Detroit Tigers chat.jpg

Come on. It's not that bad, right? The Detroit Tigers have struggled offensively on the road and their bullpen has had some issues. But there are 120 games remaining in the 2013 season and the Detroit Tigers trail the Cleveland Indians by just two games in the AL Central.
(AP File Photo)

The Tigers (23-19) are playing .548 baseball. At this pace, they will finish the season 88-74. That is the exact same record they had last season, when they won the American League Central Division and earned one of five AL playoff spots despite finishing with the seventh-best record in the American League.

The Tigers trail the Cleveland Indians by two games in the division race. The season is far from over, but the Tigers seem to have underachieved a bit so far this season.

More than one-quarter of the Tigers' victories this season are against the Houston Astros. In fact, the Tigers are below .500 (17-18) in games they have played against teams other than the Astros.

The Tigers lead the majors in batting average and runs scored. They have a strong starting rotation and are tied for the AL lead in victories by starting pitchers with 20. So, why are the Tigers as close to third place as they are to first?

The bullpen has been an issue. Tigers relievers are 3-8 with a 3.91 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. No team has fewer bullpen victories than the Tigers, though their bullpen ERA (19th) and WHIP (16th) are far from rock bottom when it comes to teams in the majors.

The Tigers are six games over .500 at Comerica Park but just 10-12 on the road. That's not all on the bullpen. The Tigers lead the majors in batting average (.280) and runs scored (222), but they are a different team at home than they are on the road. The Tigers are hitting .307 with an .858 OPS at home and .257 with a .717 OPS on the road.

The Tigers are averaging 6.2 runs at home and 4.5 runs on the road. Thirty-seven of the 98 runs they have scored on the road were in a four-game sweep of the Houston Astros. That means they are averaging 3.4 runs per game in road games not against the Astros.

How would you rate the team's performance so far? In what areas do they need to improve? Are you confident that they will win the division? Has their performance so far made you less confident in their chances to win the World Series?

Join me at noon today for a live chat about this and any other issue about the Tigers that you would like to discuss. I fired off a few questions in the previous paragraph to get the discussion started. Feel free to share your thoughts on those and post any questions you would like answered and I'll be here from noon to 1 this afternoon to answer them.